Origin of name: from the Arabic word "buraq" and the Persian word "burah" .

Boron compounds have been known for thousands of years, but the element was not isolated until 1808 by Sir Humphry Davy, Joseph-Louis Gay-Lussac (1778-1850) and Louis Jaques Thenard (1777-1857). This was accomplished through the reaction of boric acid (H3BO3) with potassium.